Thank you, Kale!

Mmmmm, kale. A healthy, fibrous green vegetable acclaimed by the health world as a "super food" and staple addition to a healthy diet. People in the health and food industry are always urging more people to eat veggies, "natural" products, that our bodies digest better and can be converted into healthy fuel for the body.

I agree completely. Eating more vegetables has helped me maintain and perform to levels I did not expect possible. Guess I should start eating more of this GMO.

Yes, GMO. Kale is a GMO. Genetically modified organism. And it's a damn good one. A few more of its vegetable relatives are too.

Kale: Another Fabulous Benefit of Genetic Modification (INFOGRAPHIC) from Food Insight

Kale, broccoli, brussel sprouts and cauliflower are just a few examples of vegetables that are genetically engineered for certain qualities we want. Many foods in nature today are not what they looked like many years ago. That's adaptation. Some of them, like the sweet potato, are naturally derived GMOs. Nonetheless, they are still good for you.

The term GMO gets a bad rep. Instead, first world people are obsessed with the terms like "organic, natural, gluten free", when those products may not have any other option to begin with. In today's age of technology, scientists and food production companies know the growing need for food diversity, instant meals, and more options to feed our extremely picky or extremely adventurous taste buds.


I'm often put in an awkward position. My dad is an organic farmer. I work for a biotechnology and chemical company. I'm a bodybuilder and select different eating options than most! Before people have the chance to ask, I tell them.
"I am in a unique position to understand both "sides" of crop production."

I'm #proGMO. I'm #proorganic. I'm #profoodoptions. I'm #profeedtheworld.

I found this quick questionnaire published by the New York Times and would like you to take it. Not only does it tell you the correct answer and why, but it says a percentage of how many people who have also taken the quiz got the right answer. It was kind of surprising the results for some of the responses, as more people knew the correct one than I may have thought!

The below video from Jimmy Kimmel's show is entertaining, but also very depressing. People do not really know what GMO is, besides a "bad" acronym.




What can you do about it? Eat more kale. Eat more spinach. Eat more salmon. Heck, keep eating that Chipotle... I probably won't be because they have their own issues going on. However, they bring more competition to the food industry and keep us going. They keep farmers needed and wanted.

My point is, we [as consumers] need to spend a little more time understanding the process behind food. Our parents and educators need to help explain what genetically modified really means. Today's farmers need to stop getting defensive and listen to what questions consumers have, identify the gap in their knowledge, and help them see there are good things behind today's modern agriculture practices. If you are not afraid to eat something, why should someone else? Help others around you overcome these fears and confusions in the market place.

Humans hate change. This is a fact. Habits can be made to help overcome initial thoughts and understandings about food, agriculture, restaurants and marketing of today's food. Thanks kale for helping me clear that up.

Now, what questions do you have?